Yelp made its South American debut on Wednesday with the launch of Yelp Brazil, the 23rd country in which the service has launched.

The local business reviews site's efforts in Brazil will initially focus on Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, the largest city in Brazil, Miriam Warren, Yelp's vice president of new markets, said in a statement.

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"We're excited to welcome this population of 200 million people into the Yelp fold. With such a diversity of cultures, tastes and ideas from every corner of the world, Brazil seems like a perfect fit for the Yelp family," Warren said. "We can now give the 7th largest country by GDP the opportunity to share experiences about amazing local businesses; from the best place to watch football to where to drink Caipirinha, the national cocktail, all from their computers and smartphones."

In addition to marking its first presence in South America, Yelp Brazil is the local business reviews site's first foray into a Lusophone country, making Portuguese the 14th language in which Yelp reviews can be read.

People in Brazil can begin using the site, create a profile, and use the mobile app, while local businesses can lay claim to their pages and begin building their profiles.